Life with a Baby: Weeks 6 + 7

There is something magical about reaching 6 weeks postpartum. So many mamas told me that once we hit 6 weeks I would feel significantly better about so many aspects of parenthood and that has definitely been true for us. I noticed a big improvement even from weeks 5 to 6. We feel like we’re getting into a groove as parents. Not that I expect things will always be smooth sailing, but it’s reassuring to know that this isn’t as hard as it was in the early days. We’re getting our feet under us and our confidence as parents is growing on a weekly basis. It feels good!

To think last year we were still on the fence about parenthood, mostly because of our fears of the unknown. Growing up, I never really had that strong urge to have children and most of my life I said I probably wouldn’t have kids. Oh how things can change. Now I can’t imagine my life without Adriana and I know we are both eager to have more kids if we are lucky enough to. I would love to have two or three kids, close in age. But that thinking could change once this little monkey is mobile! hah. It’s a bit scary to think about being in the pregnancy/breastfeeding/newborn/toddler stage for the next several years…

So what’s new since the last update? Well, Adriana has certainly discovered the world around her. And boy does she think it’s exciting! From the black chandelier in our bedroom to the shadows on the wall, she does not stop looking around and fights sleep like crazy. Sometimes when I try to nurse her, she will get distracted by the room and look everywhere except my nipple. Then she looks up at me with a huge smile and let’s out this excited “coo” or squeak. It makes me laugh so much. It’s fun seeing the world through her eyes. Lately, she loves to go in the Ergo carrier with me and walk around the house as I tell her about each room and all the things she’s looking at. The kitchen seems to be the favourite room right now. She especially loves looking in the fridge…I guess the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree!

Morning is still my favourite time of day. It’s definitely Adriana’s happiest time of the day and she loves to smile, coo, squeak, and kick her legs and arms around like crazy while desperately trying to make noises come out of her mouth. It’s quite a performance. She will often start by thrashing her legs, panting, and then she opens her mouth in excitement and after a few seconds a big squeak or coo comes out. I don’t know who is more amused by it all.

Some days she naps for a long stretch in the morning so that is usually my chance to work. I wasn’t sure how much interest I’d have for my work with a newborn, but doing bits throughout the day keeps me sane and happy. I am so grateful that I enjoy my work as much as I do. In a strange way, I think I have been more creative since having her. I don’t know why, but it’s motivated me and some days the ideas are just flowing like crazy! Maybe my preggo brain is finally gone? Or my love of food has returned? Other mornings she doesn’t nap at all, so it really just depends on her mood. Overall, she seems to be a very high energy baby. Everyone who comes to visit always comments on this. I think we might be in for it!

We do tummy time a few times per day and she’s a lot less frustrated with it now than she used to be (she used to just cry and chew her hand after a minute or so). After she mastered turning her head from side to side, she can now hold her head up on her own for 5-10 seconds or so. She has much more head control these days. It’s been so fun to witness these developmental milestones!

More than ever, I’m all about the quick meals lately. I thought I’d share my 5 minute go-to lunch that I’ve been enjoying for weeks now:

This is lunch #1…I am always hungry for another lunch later in the afternoon (it’s usually leftovers). For snacks, I’m loving soaked almonds! They are high in protein and calcium, good for lactation, and satiating. What are your go-to quick meals?

I have a couple funny stories to share with you this week…

In the middle of the night the other week, I was feeding Adriana in bed. It was probably around 3am or so. I was so groggy (obvi). All of a sudden, I saw something out of the corner of my eye. It looked like a black spot on the ceiling. Curious. When my eyes focused a bit better in the darkness I realized it was a HUGE SPIDER dangling about 12 inches from my face! Of course being the freak that I am I jumped in fear, yelling SPIDER!, while Adriana almost bit my nipple off. Eric flew out of bed in a panic not knowing what the heck was going on (poor guy) and like a magician he caught the spider just before it landed on my face. It was pretty hilarious (think: spider scene from the movie Just Married). Now we know why they say people eat several spiders a year while sleeping…

Around week 3 or 4 when I was dealing with a ton of breastfeeding pain, I bought some Booby Tubes. For those who don’t know, these are circular flaxseed-based heating pads for your boobs. You can heat them in the micro or oven, or pop them in the freezer to chill. Then you just place them on your breasts. Since we don’t have a microwave, I popped them into the oven to heat up and then I went to shower with Eric agreeing to take them out when the timer went off. Well, I guess I had the temperature up too high because the Booby Tubes burned to hell in the oven. Eric didn’t know what to do so he threw the smoking Booby Tubes onto the deck (LOL) so they wouldn’t stink up the house. Guess who found them quite tasty? Yup, the squirrels decided they would make a great snack! Flax seed for all…

We still haven’t found where the squirrel dragged one of them off to. Note to self: lower oven temperature next time. I wrote to the store explaining this story and they are sending me a new set! Bless their souls.

Pacifier or thumb? Neither – Adriana has yet to discover sucking her thumb and she has rejected the pacifiers we gave her. Strange, no?

Nicknames: Monkey, Milk Monster, Werewolf (don’t ask, lol)

Recent personal discovery: I never knew how much patience I had until I became a mom

This week’s highlight: I hosted a lunch with my girlfriends this week which was so nice because it was the first time I had hung out with any of them since the birth. Adriana met her first two buddies – twin girls born 6 weeks before her! Two more of our friends are due in December, so there will be a total of 5 newborn girls by the end of the year. Crazy!!

We enjoyed: Our first walk in the carrier on the trails I used to walk during my pregnancy

It sounds like things are going wonderfully for you and your family. I have always loved reading your blog before baby, and I love it even more now since you have started blogging about parenthood! Are you excited about the approaching holidays?

It’s so exciting to hear about adriana’s growth, and how you grow as a parent with your baby. I can’t believe how quickly they grow and begin to take the world in. I am super anxious ( in a good way) to have my little guy who is due on tuesday but seems like he is never going to come. the anticipation to meet him grows everyday for my husband and myself. I love reading about your journey through motherhood now because its nice to get a glance through another new moms eyes as whats to come. It’s been an amazing experience being pregnant, but I am so ready to meet my little guy.
Btw- I died laughing with your reaction to the spider coming to get you lol, I recently had a similar experience in my bathroom, my husband went to grab the spider mid air to get away from me, but all i saw was it come flying at me and thought it was in my hair, i laughed and cried so hard. He says it wasnt even near me but i swear it came for me lol

Thank you for that Booby Tube story, I was sitting here almost wetting myself at the visual I had of what a smoking breast ring flying through the air may have looked like to someone walking by! At least the squirrels found good use for them! And thank you for your updates, I loved your site before (and the cookbook…I just made the luxurious tomato-basil pasta the other day and now I’m eyeing the life-affirming nacho dip!) and I love reading about your new adventures with Adriana (also taking in any tips for future reference)!

I hope you keep us updated on Adriana’s first Christmas (December is sneaking up quick…it’s scary)!:) And thanks for being so awesome and such a great role model…you’re such an inspiration! All the best as always to you and your family (and Sketchie of course, I hope he’s warming up to the little one!)

You’re such a good writer, Angela – I absolutely love reading your posts, baby- and food-related! I’m glad everything is getting into a bit of a groove. I was struck by you saying that you weren’t sure if you wanted kids; this may be too personal, but if you don’t mind sharing can I ask what tipped the scales in favour of getting pregnant? I have felt exactly as you described my whole life, but recently am questioning if I’d regret not having kids. All of my friends with kids *always* wanted to be moms, so it’s hard to relate!

Hi Tara, I can totally relate to that! I always felt like there was something wrong with me because I didn’t want kids (which of course is so ridiculous, but when you hear everyone talking about it I always felt like the odd one out…). Seeing our siblings have children planted the seed in our minds. I fell in love with my nieces and nephews. We started to shift to ‘maybe’, in recent years. Then last fall, we were at a party with friends (many of whom have babies and young kids) and we talked about having kids, parenting, the joys and challenges, etc. They really made us feel like we could do it. So after that convo we talked and decided that we wanted to set our fears aside and go for it. I think it was helpful for me to also know that many others feel on the fence too, and I even had freak out during the first trimester too. Its normal not to know…I know you will figure it out one way or another!

I am on the same page with the baby thing! I have recently started searching for blogs or articles that I can relate to and haven’t had much luck. Angela, your words are so kind and so honest about your own experience…thank you! Care to write an entire post about this topic in general? I could pay you for a “therapy hour…” haha. Kidding but also serious. ;)

I am 31 and all around me I am hearing statistics and facts about the increase risk with waiting to have kids. Drives me nuts. On top of that, I am feeling left behind, so to speak, with all my closest friends having their first and even their second babies right now. My husband and I have been married for 6 years and thankfully…we are on the same page and he is okay with waiting as well. If there were added pressure from one of us, I could imagine that being even more painful!

I have had many people ask me if the birth is what is causing me to pause, and I don’t always think that is it. The best way I can describe it is- apathetic…Just almost numb and ‘cloudy’ when it comes to that topic! Even though I can see down the road and imagine a cute little family together in years to come! So strange! On the fence, like Angela said, is really a good description of how I feel too.

I have heard a few opinions or tips that have kind of helped me feel at ease in the recent month… Let me share a few with ya.

First- “Don’t wait to want.” I love that concept. Although I feel like for my situation personally, getting our crap together as a married couple is/was probably better for a child anyway….so waiting for us a certain time has been amazing to discover challenges of marriages and how to frickin communicate like an adult instead of a child. ;) We also have been blessed to unpack a lot of our “baggage” from our own families with books, friends, and counseling which was amazzzinggggggg.

Second- “The answer hasn’t been ‘No’ for kids.” Meaning, we look at each other and ask the question, “do you want to have kids someday?” The answer has been, “Yes.”
So for us, that has just put us at peace recently realizing then that the timing is not right. Also, in regards to timing, my hubby said it best…he said that if God wants to change hearts, desires, plans… He can and He will. This may not put everyone at ease- but it sure has calmed the weird rush of emotion that I have been experiencing so heavily this last year (like all the sudden bawling like a baby when a friend calls to tell me they are pregnant with their first baby… Yeah, that happened, and WHO does that?!! ME. Embarrassing and feel like a dork afterwards).

I hope this helps Tara- I am with ya and it really does help to hear of others that are similar in the whole “I never had the urge to be a parent” growing up… I wish I had more advice or could change how I currently feel too, but for the moment (and this is just in the last month that I am at peace with saying this) I am trying to just let it go and believe that the timing must not be right.

I loved reading this thread- very encouraging that others feel the same way! We want kids, but neither of us are “baby people.” We don’t really want kids now, but also don’t want to wait until it’s too late and have regrets! None of our close friends have had babies yet, so that doesn’t help. It’s such a tough decision and a huge life change, so it was great to read about your story, Angela. Thanks for sharing!

The spider thing happened to me and my daughter but it was crawling on the bed. It is funny how your mom instincts are 1) save baby from spider 2) run & scream from spider. Before having my daughter I would have just ran away screaming but now I have someone to rescue.

Neither of my kids took a pacifier or sucked their thumb either. I tried the pacifier with both, but in the end I’m glad they didn’t take them because that means I don’t ever have to take them away!
And I had to seriously stifle my laughter at the Booby Tube story–my 7 month old had fallen asleep nursing and I almost woke him up! That is hilarious!

Ha ha! Love the booby tube story.
Remember padsicles? If your breasts and nipples are still sore try brasicles. Lightly dampen nursing cloths or other very soft cloths and also apply witch hazel to the cloths, freeze and then stuff your nursing bra for some cooling relief. The witch hazel will help a little with swelling and irritation.

HA! I’m loving the Booby Tube story. It’s a shame they burned, but what a treat it must have been for the squirrels! As for the spider story, YIKES. Those little devils always come at the most inopportune times! I will never forget the night a huge wolf spider decided to check out the Mad Men season premiere with me and crawled up on the bed just inches away.

Aww soo happy you guys are all settling in! That booby tube story is hilarious! I can just imagine Eric finding them smoking and whipping them outside!!! Those squirrels are lucky they got a little flax treat before the winter! My sister is pregnant right now with a girl due in February it is the time of baby gals i suppose!!! I adore your blog cannot wait to try that sweet potato pie I loooveee sweet potatoes! i would LOVE more smoothie recipes-I have been making one every morning and I SWEAR my brain functions better, I am more alert I LOVE your recipes! I always swore i would not have kids now i am engaged and cannot wait to have babies haha I love reading your experiences it is knowledge for the future :) THANK YOU! -Vicky

I laughed so hard at the Booby Tubes story, tears formed in my eyes! I love that you share real stories like that here. Being a mom is often messy and crazy, among other things, but it sure makes for great stories. And little things like that are easily forgotten over the years, so documenting it will make sure you can laugh about it in years to come!

It’s interesting to read the character traits you’ve noted in Adriana already. I used to be an environment trumps heredity person all the way, but having kids changed my thinking completely. How my twins behaved in utero (son basically sleeping and burping, daughter popping up so much in my belly that I nicknamed her “Popcorn” before she was even born!) matches so well with who they are ‘ex utero.’ Even down to the fact that I had to have a C-section because a) she was positioned in such a way (as in her little bottom was sticking down) as to block a possible vaginal birth – clearly she was determined to be first out (: – and b) she had started “taking” most of the nutrients that were filtering down to them – both sooo her! Even the way she breastfed the first time was in such a determined and focused fashion, whereas my son had to be ‘sold’ on it; he was the reason I eventually attended La Leche classes. By the way, as a woman who has never experienced labor, your account was so moving. It was fascinating to see how very primal instincts take over and make it mentally bearable; for example, when you spoke of actually nodding off at one point – wow!

I love reading about Adriana’s updates! She sounds more adorable by the minute – it must be so fun to see and track her developments!! I have a much younger brother (we’re talking 15 years younger) and it is such a blessing to watch him grow up and to be a part of his life!!

And I love that quote – sending it to my mom & grandma! I am sure it will make them smile :) Have a great week! <3

Good to hear you’re reading our app! We, ‘the Wonder Weeks Team’, are reading your recipes every day! You’re our inspiration, hope our app will be yours. Don’t you have the book? If you send me your address I will send you one. And the Journal, our newest ‘baby’.

Ange,
The personal blogging is what attracted me to ohsheglows very early on…yes I’ve been here from “Boo!” haha! Anyway, as this place changed into a more stuffy business blog of food, I lost interest fast. Now that you are sharing your life again, I’m here everyday checking for new posts. You and Eric are great parents and thank you for sharing your life with us! YOU are the best part of this blog. :)

I so enjoy reading your baby post updates. I had our daughter, Ingrid, on Aug 30 and we’ve experienced similar things as you’ve described – moments of complete bliss and beauty combined with anxiety, exhaustion, fear and frustration. Your details around your breast feeding experience at the beginning brought back a lot of memories, as I was shocked at how painful breast feeding was for me. In fact, there were times where I thought it was more painful than delivery itself (and I ended up getting 4th degree tears). When people ask me how long I plan on breast feeding, I think to myself that if I was able to get through the first 10 days of pain, hey, I’m going to try for the long haul!

Your recipes are amazing, and your family is beautiful. Thanks for continuing to share all that you’re experiencing. You’re an amazing mom.

This post was a treat to read. I’m so glad to hear that you’re getting into a grove! I really do miss the days when fun was sitting around the house mesmerized by an entertaining baby. You bring it all back. I love reading your posts!
Thanks for sharing your avocado and cracker lunch idea. The simplest lunches are sometimes the best.
Here are two easy lunches I’m into right now:
1) Leftover quinoa or rice mixed with celery, a chopped umeboshi plum, and either cashews or sunflower seeds. I eat it at room temp with a drizzle of olive oil. The combo of textures and flavors is great. It makes a good to-go lunch, too.
2) A tortilla spread with sunflower butter and a teaspoon or so of sunflower seeds for crunch. The chewiness of the tortilla is very nice with the creaminess of the sunflower butter. I usually pack snap peas to eat on the side with this.

Ooh, I didn’t know there’s a wonder weeks app! My wife devoured that book and it really helped with our first daughter.

We also used the Healthy Sleep book. It’s a rather cold, clinical book, but sometimes that’s what you need. Another very useful book at this young age is Baby Whisperer. We cherry-picked advice from many different sources instead of subscribing to one “ideal”.

I can totally relate to your comment that you never knew how much patience you had until you became a mom. With me it’s the same. It’s unbelievable how much patience I have had and still now that my daughter is getting a bit older. Isn’t it amazing how much you get to learn about yourself as soon as you become a parent?!

And love the quote about strong women ! Makes me think of my daughter and how strong she already is. Although that’s not always easy on me hah, it reminds me that that’s a good thing. Something to be encouraged.

I have just read all your baby posts. Just been so busy cooking your recipes. I have taken it upon myself to make every single recipe from your cookbook! Let me just say I admire the fact that you can write so openly about your experiences and feelings. And so many things are familiar to me. The birth story and the troubles with breastfeeding. But let me just say that it’s sounds like you are doing great!

So glad everything is going well baby wise :) my 9 week old is getting smilier (is that a word?) and more fun every day but has recently decided that sleeping at night is for losers so I am completely exhausted! Question – are any of your teas good for breastmilk production? I was going to order “Mother’s Milk” tea on Amazon but then I thought I’d see if you had a lactation tea – I didnt see any mention of one in the tea shoppe but thought I’d ask. I’d make lactation cookies but I can barely muster up the energy to shower, so…

As a blog reader for many many years it is so exciting to be able to share in this life transition with you. Love seeing all the pictures and hearing the stories! The spider one sounds exactly like how it would go in this household! haha. Look forward to hearing more about your journey into motherhood. Makes me excited, and less nervous to venture there myself!:)

Sounds like you are really taking to being a mommy. My son is almost 10mo old (can’t believe it!) and those first few weeks I told my husband that maybe we’ll be a one child family but I’m here to say it just gets better and better and will have more if we are blessed enough. We plan on 2.5 years apart. This way it will hopefully be more manageable! I praise those people who have kids 1.5yrs apart. I’d love that but do not think I could handle that. I can’t wait to read more and see more photos of her!!!

I laughed out loud at both the spider and the Booby tubes stories. Too funny!

Pacifiers…meh. I had three kids who spit pacifiers out within seconds. I’m not even going to try with number four. They find their thumbs/fingers if they need it and then you don’t have to worry about constantly hunting for lost, dirty pacifiers.

This is a great post – I feel like I’m reliving life with my boy (now six) all over again. I think it’s great that you have a go-to lunch that works. My son had the most sensitive stomach and in order to breastfeed I had to cut so much out of my diet (anything cruciferous, some nuts, etc). It was so hard as a vegan to get enough to eat and enough to eat of anything that wouldn’t make him have tummy troubles. And yet… I miss it :)

Hi! Just wanted to send you a quick note to say my little guy never ever took a soother or sucked his thumb – he was a breastfeed baby too and would accept no substitutes! Smart boy, I guess! Glad to hear you are doing so well – those first months can be really tough. :) Take care!

I just wanted to let you know how much I enjoy reading your blog, especially the baby section! I do not have children and I am currently a student but it is encouraging to know that perhaps one day I can remain vegan and have a healthy happy baby if/when the time becomes right. Praying for continued blessings for you and your family and friends!

So awesome to see you babywearing and even more so that you’re wearing an ergonomic carrier! I have a 14-month-old and am totally addicted to babywearing. We use woven wraps and my husband wears a Tula (it’s like an Ergobaby). And the Wonder Weeks app is so amazing and incredibly accurate. Anytime my son seems to be off his game, I check the app and sure enough, he’s in “stormy period”.

Its surprising to me that so many people love this book. I was about to comment that I found it so in need of a good editor that I couldn’t even finish it. I also found that in the parts I did read there were too many unsubstantiated scare tactics (e.g. relationship between insufficient sleep and US incarceration rates), and that his guidance bordered on cruel. It came highly recommended, so maybe its just me!

I just want to say I love reading these posts! I’ve loved reading your blog for years now and your voice here with your posts about your daughter is so honest and it’s great! I laughed at your story about burning the boob donuts :) I’m reading this while nursing my own sweet baby

This was a lovely update to read. 6 weeks and 6 months are milestones – like something kind of clicks. I actually haven’t read a single baby book. So if you have tips you found useful from them, I wouldn’t mind hearing. I am about 2 weeks away from due date for baby #3, and I’m just now getting around to thinking through what the first few weeks will be like.

You mentioned having more children – I will have 3, ages 3 and under come December. And I’ve kept working, traveling, etc. with all of them. There are many crazy moments, but the joy for us has been amazing.

Hi Angela! I’ve been following your blog for years not only for your great recipes, but also for your lovely personality as you talk about the everyday stuff. Lately I’m really enjoying your baby posts as I’m expecting my first this Spring—thank you for always being so open and honest! :-)

I’m a long time reader and have become an impressive vegan chef thanks to your website :) this is my first time commenting, but couldn’t help myself. The way you talk about Adriana made me a little emotional. Your vulnerability and authenticity make all of us, your readers, feel like your friends. Thank you for sharing your life with us!

That is exactly what I was going to write! Angela is so honest and her tone makes you feel like catching up with an old friend. I would read the blog if it was just about her personal life. The recipes just take it over the top!

I totally had the same spider story! Except that I was feeding my 7 week old son on the couch and it was during the middle of the day. Instead of trying to kill it however, I blew at it, and it tumbled to the floor (or so I thought!). Of course then I was petrified to step on the floor barefoot, so I wore slippers for the rest of the day. After that first day, I thought that for sure I would have already stepped on the spider and killed it…but…2 days later, I was sitting on the couch feeding again, and I looked over, and there was the spider sitting right on the edge of the couch!! I couldn’t believe it! This time, the spider did not live…but I have to say that this spider sure did try to stick around!

OMG, I was laughing my butt off at burning the booby pads to hell! I bought some gel pads from my lactation consultant that were hospital grade. I bought two sets and would just keep rotating them suckers when I had pain! Another thing that helped me (because my nipples were cracked to pieces and my little guy was so small at birth – small mouth for latching) was a nipple guard. I swear that piece of plastic saved my life. If it wasn’t for that I wouldn’t have made it through two years of breastfeeding. Anyway, probably too much information from a stranger, but I wanted to let you know to hang in there because soon (around 12 weeks for me) breastfeeding will be pain free.